Corruption in public procurement is when a person in the public or private sector improperly and unlawfully enrich themselves and/or close to them, or induce others to do so, by using the position for which they are placed in and it occurs in a public acquisition process [1] . Commonly known procurement corruption procedures can be 1) purchase terms tailored for a selected vendor 2) circumvention of the bidding process (bid rotation, bid suppression, creation of complementary and phantom bids, disqualification of qualified applicants) and 3) low-quality goods delivered instead of originally contracted ones, incomplete contrast or improper billing [2] . Public procurement is the government activity most vulnerable to corruption according to OECD report [3] .
Procurement corruption in Finland
A recently published corruption report from the EU commission highlights problems in Finland concerning decision-making in state investments, where public procurements often are decided by private companies that have no obligation to prevail details publicly [4] . Public procurement can also be affected by the old boys network-problem that still remains in Finland, it is stated in the report [5] .
In Finland the public procurement amount to an annual total of EUR 22.5 billion or equivalent of about 15% of GDP. The organization Hansel Ltd, functions as a central procurement unit assisting in government procurement procedures in Finland [6] .
Procurement in the healthcare sector
In a study on corruption in the healthcare sector published by the EU Commission, it is clear in Finland that conflict of interest is often compromised by the fact that people have double or multiple roles, e.g. as administrators and experts and the roles may be confounded. The number of experts is small which facilitates the brotherhood network-phenomena. It is further stated in the report that the smaller the number of suppliers that are part of the procurement process, the higher the risk for collusion [7].
Tools to combate procurement corruption
In Finland, there are several actual and suggested policies and practices that work as tools against procurement corruption. For example The Act on the Openness of Government Activities defines the principle of openness meaning that official documents shall be in the public domain, unless specifically otherwise provided. The Act on Public Contracts states that contract authorities shall put their contracts out to tender. The purpose of the Act is to increase the efficiency of the use of public funds, safeguard equal opportunities for companies and other communities in offering supply, service and public works contract under competitive bidding for public procurement. The Medicines act and decree includes provisions on the marketing of medicinal products. The Pharma Industry Finland has published its own of Code of Ethics in 2013 [8] .
^ Basheka, C, B. & Tumutegyereize M. Determinants of Public Procurement Corruption in Uganda - a conceptual framework.1-22
Definition
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Procurement corruption in Finland
A recently published corruption report from the EU commission highlights problems in Finland concerning decision-making in state investments, where public procurements often are decided by private companies that have no obligation to prevail details publicly [4] . Public procurement can also be affected by the old boys network-problem that still remains in Finland, it is stated in the report [5] .In Finland the public procurement amount to an annual total of EUR 22.5 billion or equivalent of about 15% of GDP. The organization Hansel Ltd, functions as a central procurement unit assisting in government procurement procedures in Finland [6] .
Procurement in the healthcare sector
In a study on corruption in the healthcare sector published by the EU Commission, it is clear in Finland that conflict of interest is often compromised by the fact that people have double or multiple roles, e.g. as administrators and experts and the roles may be confounded. The number of experts is small which facilitates the brotherhood network-phenomena. It is further stated in the report that the smaller the number of suppliers that are part of the procurement process, the higher the risk for collusion[7].
Tools to combate procurement corruption
In Finland, there are several actual and suggested policies and practices that work as tools against procurement corruption. For example The Act on the Openness of Government Activities defines the principle of openness meaning that official documents shall be in the public domain, unless specifically otherwise provided. The Act on Public Contracts states that contract authorities shall put their contracts out to tender. The purpose of the Act is to increase the efficiency of the use of public funds, safeguard equal opportunities for companies and other communities in offering supply, service and public works contract under competitive bidding for public procurement.The Medicines act and decree includes provisions on the marketing of medicinal products. The Pharma Industry Finland has published its own of Code of Ethics in 2013 [8] .